SIGN UP

Create an Inhabitat account

Sign up for weekly newsletter

I agree to receive emails from the site. I can withdraw my consent at any time by unsubscribing.

I agree to Ecouterre's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and to the use of cookies described therein, and I also consent to the collection, storage, and processing of my data in the United States, where data protection laws may be different from those in my country.

Australian Scientists Create “Fermented Fashion” From Red Wine, Beer

Don't even attempt to get the red wine out of this dress. The skintight garment is part of a line of "fermented fashion" derived entirely from the alcoholic beverage. Developed by a group of scientists at the University of Western Australia, the Microb'be' project eschews "lifeless weaving machines" in favor of living microbes, according to Gary Cass, its lead researcher. The resulting material, which comprises microfibers of cellulose, feels like sludge when wet but dries to the consistency of cotton. Just one catch: Acetobacter produces vinegar as its end product, which makes the garment smell like "the morning after the night before," Cass tells Ecouterre. "As the Micro'be' garments are more environmentally friendly than genetically engineered cotton plants, the wearer must consider how much smell they are willing to withstand to save the planet!"

BOOZY COUTURE

Cass and his colleagues culture the Acetobacter in vats of red wine—”cheap Aussie ‘goon’ wine, not the good stuff that is kept for us,” he says—but any kind of vino is copacetic. The fabric takes on the color of its feedstock: red for red wine, translucent for white wine or beer.

The bacteria ferments the alcohol into a raft of microbial fibrils that float just above the surface.

The bacteria ferments the alcohol into a raft of microbial fibrils that float just above the surface. Once extracted, the two-dimensional sheets are fashioned into clothing or fitted seamlessly on a person’s body to create a second skin. But the boozy textile isn’t just a conversation starter. Cass is researching Microb’be’s potential as medical dressing or scaffolds for tissue engineering .

“Fermented fashion doesn’t need to stay within the fashion world but can inspire new thoughts in many other disciplines, such as medicine, engineering, dentistry, architecture,” he says. “All one has to do is let their imagination, creativity, and ingenuity loose.”

RELATED ARTICLES

{{category(n, postList)}}

Slideshow

Australian Scientists Create "Fermented Fashion" From Red Wine, Beer

Fermented Fashion

1 of 7

Photos by Ray Scott

Don't even attempt to get the red wine out of this dress. The skintight garment is part of a line of "fermented fashion" derived entirely from the alcoholic beverage. Developed by a group of scientists at the University of Western Australia, the Microb'be' project eschews "lifeless weaving machines" in favor of living microbes, according to Gary Cass, its lead researcher. The resulting material, which comprises microfibers of cellulose, feels like sludge when wet but dries to the consistency of cotton. Just one catch: Acetobacter produces vinegar as its end product, which makes the garment smell like "the morning after the night before," Cass tells Ecouterre. "As the Micro'be' garments are more environmentally friendly than genetically engineered cotton plants, the wearer must consider how much smell they are willing to withstand to save the planet!"

Fermented Fashion

2 of 7

Cass and his colleagues culture the Acetobacter in vats of red wine—"cheap Aussie 'goon' wine, not the good stuff that is kept for us," he says—but any kind of vino is copacetic.

Fermented Fashion

3 of 7

The fabric takes on the color of its feedstock: red for red wine, translucent for white wine or beer.

Fermented Fashion

4 of 7

The bacteria ferments the alcohol into a raft of microbial fibrils that float just above the surface.

Fermented Fashion

5 of 7

Once extracted, the two-dimensional sheets are fashioned into clothing or fitted seamlessly on a person's body to create a second skin.

Fermented Fashion

6 of 7

But the boozy textile isn't just a conversation starter. Cass is researching Microb'be's potential as medical dressing or scaffolds for tissue engineering.

Fermented Fashion

7 of 7

"Fermented fashion doesn't need to stay within the fashion world but can inspire new thoughts in many other disciplines, such as medicine, engineering, dentistry, architecture," he says. "All one has to do is let their imagination, creativity, and ingenuity loose."